Rejection and Acceptance

Furious whispering started the moment Dumbledore sat down again. Such an unprecedented action, a re-sorting and from Gryffindor to Slytherin no less!

Ron glared at the raven-haired boy now seated at Slytherin tables. He listened to the growls of some of the other Gryffindors. At least THEY understood. What right did Harry Potter have to change houses? Why did HE get to change houses at whim and wish? It was an outrage and utterly foolishness.

"We have to get him back here!" Ron growled to nobody in particular.

"It's your fault."

"He's gone!" The twins snapped and left the table.

"No it's not." Ron called to their retreating backs. His only answer was the show-and-tell the twins gave him from over their shoulder. Ron glared angrily and would have done something except for the fact that the twins were better and faster with magic than he was being two years older and the fact he'd probably be expelled for starting something in the Great Hall again. He settled for blustering and blurting random inane remarks. Since no one actually paid any attention to him, he settled down to eat the rest of his breakfast and plot his revenge.

Watching Hermione read the paper and the many books around his friend's eating station an idea slowly turned over in his head. Normally he would have talked with Harry about such an idea, but Harry was now the target. He might've tried talking to Seamus but the boy didn't want to talk to him anymore. Neville and Dean were likewise pissed off at the red-haired boy.

~~ ~~ ~~ ~~

Harry dragged his feet on his way to double potions. In previous years he would have been walking in much the same direction with Ron and Hermione by his side complaining about Snape. Now he was scared of Snape, what the man would say, how he would act if he would change. But even more than that he was scared of the Gryffindors. He was scared of how they were going to treat him now that he was in a whole new house.

Also new was that instead of complaining or anything, Draco was by his side and comforting him as he made the uncomfortable trek down the cold halls.

"You know it's going to be okay." Draco patted his back.

"But what if they..." Harry started when Draco cut him off.

"No what ifs, you already told them last night and they didn't act too badly did they? And that was when no teachers were present. SNAPE is going to be there and now you're in his house. He'll stick up for you!" Draco assured him.

"The twins were there to stop them. And how can even Snape stop them from flicking something in my cauldron?" Harry worried.

"We're going to put a charm on the cauldron and Snape pays special attention to the REALLY dangerous things that are thrown around the room. You have nothing to worry about darling." Draco soothed as they stopped beside the door to the class.

"You sure?" Harry asked insecure still.

"Positive." Draco affirmed pulling Harry into a concilliatory hug.

"Ooh, look at the little lovers." Ron tried to sneer unsuccessfully.

"We are not lovers!" Harry snapped unhappily.

"Shh, don't give in like that. I'll teach you the Slytherin way" Draco whispered in his ear. Then he led the dark-haired boy into the potions class and to his seat.

Ron kept up his commentary, slowly getting more and more crude.

"So, when did you decide to side with you-know-who Potter?"

"So, how fast are you going to the dark side? Killed anyone yet?"

"I'm about to." Harry muttered in a whisper to Draco who giggled, causing Ron to glare at them and continue taunting Harry.

"So, what did you do last night Harry? Was it the first time you slept with Draco? Obviously not, because you were wearing SLYTHERIN robes yesterday."

"Shut-up you red-haired, boggart-loving friend-betraying creep!" Blaise shouted angrily in defence of his newest house-mate and shoved him off his stool.

Ron landed on his ass and flushed when all the Slytherins and a third off the Gryffindors burst into laughter. Jumping to his feet he pulled his arm back to punch Blaise just as Snape billowed through the doors.

"I hope you are not planning to use that." Snape drawled in his most threatening voice.

Ron let his arm drop as he angrily dropped into his seat.

"Since you have had the brains not to use that hand, you will only lose ten points. Next time maybe you will have learned not to use any violence." Turning to the front of the class he started. "Now then, we shall be working on a cheering potion today. Please be nice with your partners and remember, do NOT dice the daisy roots or you will turn your cheering charm into well, you might find out."

Everyone got to work and for the first twenty minutes there was silence in the room. And while not everyone worked in happy tandem, most pairs worked in civility. One group however worked in barely-covered hostility.

Ron and Blaise slowly got into bigger and bigger whispered arguments over the ingredients to be put in to the potion, the order to put different ingredients in the potion and then the difference between diced and chopped.

Snape billowed over to the furiously whispering boys.

"Can I be of assistance?" He demanded silkily.

"Weasel is dicing the daisy roots instead of chopping them." Blaise answered covering his anger.

"I am NOT!!" Ron snapped at the other boy.

"Well, we shall see. You will test the potion at the end of the class." Snape decided, already seeing the diced roots.

For the next fifty minutes, the class worked diligently to finish the potion before the end of class. Everyone started to bottle their potion and clean their stations. Then excitedly and somewhat nervous, they gathered in the middle of the class to watch Ron taste his potion.

"Well then. If you did it right Mr. Weasley and Mr. Zabini, you shall be laughing quite contentedly after swallowing this potion." Snape announced.

"I am NOT tasting that. I KNOW Weasel didn't chop the roots, he DICED them!" Blaise argued.

"I did NOT!" Ron argued. "And my name is WEASLEY!"

"Well then, you will not mind tasting it then." Snape decided, removing a ladelful from the cauldron.

"Fine." Ron muttered fidgeting nervously. Leaning closer to the Professor, he took a mouthful of the potion. The class watched with bated breath for something to happen. After five minutes some of the students were about to turn away when Ron's hair suddenly turned a bright pink. Slowly his skin tone turned a bit less tanned and a bit closer to the pink of his hair. His eyes had closed as he randomly turned during this process and when he opened them he was staring straight at Blaise, who had moved directly behind the professor at the start of the test. However Snape had moved seconds after Ron had swallowed a mouthful and was now sitting at his desk.

"What color is he?" Snape drawled quietly.

"Pink." Blaise sniggered.

"Pink." Ron repeated with a sigh staring at Blaise besottedly.

"Yes pink Weasel, don't you have a problem with that?" Blaise asked trying to speak through his tears of laughter.

"No." Ron answered happily.
"NO?" Blaise asked amazed at the response. By this time the whole class excepting Hermione was laughing at the pink boy who gazed adoringly at the boy who moments ago he had been arguing with very vehemently.

"It seems to make you happy, so i'm happy." Ron affirmed.

"What did this DO?" Blaise asked his professor as he slowly backed away from the pink boy.

"It's a VERY strong love-potion. He's not likely to lose it very quickly without the antidote." Snape answered.

"Let's give it to him then." Blaise answered as he was followed to the front of the room by his new pink shadow.

"Mr. Weasley, would you like to take the antidote and no longer be in love with Mr. Zabini?" Snape asked.

"No, I love him." Ron sighed trying to sneak closer to Blaise.

"Well then, I guess I'm not allowed to force him." Snape announced as though the matter was closed.

"But... bu... but, I don't WANT him to be in love with me!" Blaise whined.

"I suppose you can try to run away." Snape answered hiding his grin at his unfortunate student.

"Can I at least get a head start?" Blaise asked petulantly.

"Please be my guest. Slytherins may leave to their next class while Gryffindors may take a seat and wait." Snape announced.

"I don't WANT to wait, I want to go with Blaise." Ron whined.

"Mr. Weasley SIT down." Snape ordered and his petulant student obeyed.

Harry followed the other Slytherins on their way to defence against the dark arts class with professor Lupin.

~~ ~~ ~~ ~~

"Alright class, we are going to face a boggart today." Lupin announced as they all arrived in class. He lead the class to the Staff room and greeted Minerva who was grading papers.

"Oh, I hope we don't interupt you, Minerva." Lupin worried.

"Oh, it's okay, I'm going to go grade papers in my office instead. Have a good class then Remus." Minerva smiled at them.

When she had gone, Lupin turned to his class. "Alright guys, who knows what a boggart is?"

Pansy raised her hand and answered. "It's some creature that changes into the shape of whatever its intended victim fears the most."

"Correct. And can anyone guess how we already have an advantage over this creature?" Lupin asked.

"Well, we're so many and we're all afraid of something different so he won't know what to turn into." Harry offered.

"Correct again. All right to defeat a boggart, it's really easy, does anyone know how?" Lupin asked.

"Laughter." Crabbe answered.

"Correct Mr. Crabbe." Lupin praised causing the boy to blush.

"All right then, the spell we are going to use is Riddikulus." He made everyone repeat it and showed them the wand action required. "We shall start with you then Mr. Malfoy. What is it you would be most afraid of?"

"I would think I'd be most afraid of Weasley being in love with me." Draco answered honestly, causing an indignant 'hey' from Blaise and snickers from the rest of the class.

"Okay, well how would you make that funny?" Lupin asked his student curious to why that was his fear.

"Well, he's already pink, but I guess if he was in some sort of cage surrounded by pictures of everyone in hogwarts except me, that would be really funny." Draco admitted and snorts of laughter erupted from the class.

"Okay, well picture this cage as strongly in your mind as you can, then when the boggart comes out of the cupboard as Mrs. Weasley I presume..." Lupin left a pregnant pause for Draco to fill.

"Mr. Ronald Weasley actually." Draco coughed.

"I... see, well picture him in the cage then. Ready... Set... Go." Lupin called and shot a spark to unlock the door. Suddenly the pink form of Ron Weasley from Potions class emerged and bounced towards Draco.

"Oh Draco!" The Ron boggart sighed.

"Riddikulus!" Draco shouted, entrapping the boggart in a cage. They all watched as the boggart sifted through the pictures and started crying again and again, and all the Slytherins left.

"Mr. Zabini!" Lupin called.

Blaise stepped forward and Ron suddenly found the picture of Blaise and burst out of the box. He jumped towards Blaise moaning his name, staring at him with love shining brightly through his eyes.

"Riddikulus!" Blaise whispered pointing his wand at the Ron boggart and turning the male into a female with non-matching clothes causing everyone to laugh again.

"Mrs. Parkinson!" Lupin called next.

The girl stepped forward and Ron Weasley turned into a crawling mummified hand with a loud pop and Pansy spelled it to unroll.
The class continued to be called forward one by one and they all practiced the spell. Then, it was finally Harry's turn, but Lupin jumped in front of the boggart, which turned into a yellow ball in the air. Lupin lazily cast the spell and the ball turned into a balloon hurtling through the air and landing again into the cupboard again.

"All right class, five points to everyone who faced the boggart, and five points to Mr. Potter and Mr. Crabbe for answering the questions at the start of the class. Dismissed now." Lupin dismissed the class and led them out and sent them off to lunch.

~~ ~~ ~~ ~~

Blaise returned to the Great Hall with his class for lunch. He hunched down in his seat trying to make sure he avoided Weasley. Everyone snickered at him, but they also diligently hid him from view as they gossiped amongst themselves and everyone else about their DADA class. Within an hour after their class, the whole school knew of the Ron incidents. All three of them, and Weasley became ridiculed by many, though he didn't seem to mind.

Ronald ran into the Great Hall and gazed at the Slytherin table. He searched the table but was unable to find his quarry.

"Blaise!" He whined plaintively and caught sight of the boy in an accidental moment when the students shifted just enough for his head to peek out. Ron ran to his side.

"Can I sit here?" Ron asked the boy staring into his eyes.

"No." Blaise answered shortly.

"Your eyes are so soulful!" Ron whispered adoringly.

"Get away from ME!!!" Blaise screamed as high as any girl.

"What did I do?" Ron asked slightly hurt.

Blaise ran to the Head Table. "Help me, help me, help me, help me, help me." He chanted before the potions professor.

Ron ran up behind him. "I'm not THAT bad am I? You're my one true love!" Announced the pink Weasley before an absolutely silent Great Hall. This statement caused a moment of unrestrained laughter through most of the students.

When he could be heard, Dumbledore questioned Snape. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Ronald Weasley did not make his potions ingrediants as he was supposed to, his potion was not the cheering charm it was supposed to be and he agreed to try it. He refused any antidote. It's not as though I have the authority to force him against his will." Snape answered trying not to seem to smug.

"Can you think of NO way to stop this?" Dumbledore asked, the twinkle in his eye just that much brighter.

"Professor Dumbledore sir. I think I may know of a simple way." Hermione announced importantly from Gryffindor table.

"Yes dear?" McGonagall asked from beside the headmaster.

"Ron is in love with Zabini, so if Zabini asked him to, he would probably take it quite willingly." Hermione offered her solution.

"You want to take the antidote don't you?" Blaise begged the pink thing before him.

"Do you want me to?" Ron asked as he still gazed adoringly at him, now clutching his hand to his breast.

"YES!" Blaise screamed trying to get his hand back, but only ending up very flushed.

"Alright then, Professor Snape?" Dumbledore demanded.

"Here." Snape sighed handing the antidote to Blaise.

"Drink this." Blaise ordered, handing over the vial.

Ron drank it still holding Blaise's hand and worming as close as he could. He placed the empty vial on the head table and the whole room watched with bated breath as Ron's hair turned red again. Ron looked at Blaise screamed and jumped backwards again.

"What the BLOODY hell was that!" Ron demanded.

"Five points from Gryffindor for inappropriate language." Snape announced silkily. "So, apparently Mr. Zabini was right, you diced your roots."

"Oh." Ron answered and with a blush he turned purple.

*AN* All right, I think I may be in love with this chapter and I was very eagerly waiting to get it back so I could share, I hope everyone else likes it too. I would love some feedback as to ideas anyone might have. Things they would like to see happen. Please tell me, i NEED to know!!!

Crazy Pedantic: Always have to keep up with the 'first' traditions Potter started XD though Weasley took a bit of the spotlight here... and Crabbe and Goyle too a bit I believe, lol. Oh, before I forget, I was a bit late in my reviews and stuff last chapter, but there is some if you wanna check it out XD

thrnbrooke: Hope it was fast enough XD

Akira_Kushrenada_Merquize: I know, I had SO much fun writing that scene and KNOWING they weren't going to kiss... It was too early and I'm not sure if Ron just sent it back this chapter or brought it closer.

HeartStar: Of course I'm still writing XD I couldn't leave this story alone... I've been literally bouncing waiting for my busy beta to have a spot of time to check this story out. I'm SO glad she had time before I went too crazy, lol.

Sheri: NOPE!!! Just knowing you are reading and like this story makes ANY review you send AWESOME!!! I LOVE reviews... I was warned not to be a review whore, but truly I think I might be, cause reviews just make me more excited for the story, write faster and be a bit more creative.

Layla: I'm still in the planning stages of what's going to happen with Sirius... But he's gonna be important soon, because I love him too much. I purposely made Ron that way because I wanted a story where the TRIO does NOT stay together. Ron is very vindictive and can be pretty mean, so I don't think he'd get over it easily, and probably not at all... Though maybe in five years or so... However even if that, they won't be as good friends.

On a special note, for Madame de Coeur, thrnbrooke, HeartStar and Sheregal I WILL make my oneshot longer, AFTER I complete this story.

So now, brownies for everyone who reviews and please remember to give me some ideas and your thoughts!!!